The presence of inclusions, twinning, and low-angle grain boundaries, demanded to exist by the third law of thermodynamics, drive the behavior of quantum materials. Identification and quantification of these structural complexities often requires destructive techniques. X-ray micro-computed tomography (µCT) uses high-energy X-rays to non-destructively generate 3D representations of a material with micron/nanometer precision, taking advantage of various contrast mechanisms to enable the quantification of the types and number of inhomogeneities. We present case studies of µCT informing materials design of electronic and quantum materials, and the benefits to characterizing inclusions, twinning, and low-angle grain boundaries as well as optimizing crystal growth processes. We discuss recent improvements in µCT instrumentation that enable elemental analysis and orientation to be obtained on crystalline samples. The benefits of µCT as a non-destructive tool to analyze bulk samples should encourage the community to adapt this technology into everyday use for quantum materials discovery.

热力学第三定律要求存在的夹杂物、孪晶和小角度晶界会驱动量子材料的行为。这些结构复杂性的识别和量化通常需要破坏性技术。X 射线显微计算机断层扫描 (µCT) 使用高能 X 射线非破坏性地生成具有微米/纳米精度的材料的 3D 表示，利用各种对比机制来量化不均匀性的类型和数量. 我们介绍了 µCT 为电子和量子材料的材料设计提供信息的案例研究，以及表征夹杂物、孪晶和低角度晶界以及优化晶体生长过程的好处。我们讨论了 µCT 仪器的最新改进，这些仪器使元素分析和取向能够在晶体样品上获得。µCT 作为分析大量样品的非破坏性工具的好处应该鼓励社区将这项技术应用到量子材料发现的日常使用中。